Let's help victims of Katrina

I went online to www.redcross.org and donated. I feel like it's all I can do. I was just sitting in front of the TV crying, watching people's lives ruined.

I feel like this can't be really happening. The scenes on TV look like something out of one of those end-of-the-world disaster movies. I can't believe they are talking about setting up refugee camps. I can't believe police are getting shot trying to stop looters. It's so sad.

Pray for all the people in Gulfport, Biloxi, Pascagulah, Pass Christian, New Orleans. I know I am.

Some things you might not know about me

I stole this idea from Brooke of Babbling Brooke.

1. I love to eat chips and salsa for breakfast.
2. I drive a VW beetle--the new kind.
3. I used to have my belly-button pierced, but I took it out as an engagement gift to my husband (he never liked it).
4. I'm a freak for well-manicured nails. I hate it when I have a hangnail.
5. I don't know anything about babies, but I want to have one ASAP!
6. I have one sibling--a little brother.
7. I've only traveled abroad to London.
8. I really want to go to Italy.
9. I'm a Christian--grew up Methodist.
10. I used to be a swimmer, but now I prefer yoga.
11. I never eat at the table.
12. I haven't ironed anything since moving to California.
13. My husband and I danced our first song to "I can't help falling in love with you" by Elvis.
14. We were married in Memphis.
15. I don't allow myself to eat sugar.
16. I can't decide if my home decor should be modern or french provencal, so my house looks confused.
17. I love all things asian, and I have had this obsession for years.
18. I was a total goody two-shoes in high school.
19. My favorite drink is a frozen margarita with salt.
20. When I was a kid, my mom would take us to Sonic every day after school for 1/2 priced slushes. I always got cherry.
21. My favorite ice cream is chubby hubby by Ben and Jerry's, but I don't let myself eat it. See #15.
22. The best chocolate is Ritter Sport.
23. The best food in london was chocolate hobnobs.
24. I love Indian food!!
25. I am thinking about food a lot here, aren't I?
26. When I was little, I used to fantasize about growing gills and becoming a mermaid. Seriously.
27. When I was in 3rd grade I had a HUGE crush on this guy named Chad Smith--he had red hair and freckles.
28. In college I worked at Abercrombie and Fitch.
29. I've had many many crazy times in New Orleans. I hope they survive Katrina.
30. My husband made me sane. Before him I was all over the place.

Dreams

Lately I've been dreaming about my husband, who is out of er, town.

I've had a dream about him every night for the last 3 nights. In each dream, he comes home to me, and I'm so excited he's home, but we don't get to spend any time together. In the last one, there were all kinds of people around, and we kept trying to get away from everyone, but we couldn't find a place to be alone.

What do you think this means?

Does anyone have fun plans for labor day?

I've been working my butt off at school this week, getting ready for the kids to come Monday. The good news is...Labor Day is coming up in a week! Anyone have some fun plans? I don't!

My Husband--the International Man of Mystery

This is my husband--the mysterious person I never talk about! As you can see, he's a pilot. He's not here in San Diego at the moment. (yes, that's a real picture of him. I didn't steal some clip art!)

Yes, it's a hard life we lead. I miss him. He's a great guy. He'll be back soon.

So, how did it all begin?

My friend from high school, G, and I went to a wedding of another friend from high school, B. I'm calling her B b/c she was a real B if you know what I mean. At the wedding, G told me that her boyfriend had a friend she wanted me to meet. I was like, whatever. G and I were always VERY different. I figured any guy she would set me up with would be weird or something.

So, the next weekend I went on this blind date. Mystery Man walked through the door and I thought, he's cute! We got along great, and at the end of the night he asked for my phone number. He called me and we went out a few more times, and then we began a long-distance relationship. He was in college in Mississippi, and I was teaching in Birmingham.

We dated for a year and he moved to Virginia. I thought it might be the end of our relationship b/c he was never able to see me. But, he had other ideas in mind. He asked me to marry him. We were engaged for 6 months, and then we got married and moved to Florida.

Moving away from my friends and family was hard. I thought it would be fine b/c I have always been one to make friends easily. It was hard being a newlywed, new to a city, new to a job, new to this lifestyle of a military wife. These are all things I can post about another day.

So, here's my husband. He's great. I could go on and on! I will save it for another post. I hope this cleared up some of the mystery!

Went to a Wedding this weekend

On Saturday I went to a wedding of a friend here in San Diego. They got married in a church and then had the reception on a boat out on the bay. It was very nice.

Ok, here's the interesting part. My husband is out of town. (he's been out of town for a while--maybe you can guess his occupation) I only know the bride and groom and the matron of honor. The matron of honor cancels at the last minute b/c of a family emergency. I still went to the wedding BY MYSELF.

Alright, this is a big deal for me. This is brave! I went to a wedding where I didn't know anyone but the busiest people in the room, and I survived. I didn't just survive, I thrived! I picked out the coolest group there, and I just went up and made myself at home. I ended up hanging out with these 2 couples all night. They totally adopted me. We even exchanged numbers at the end of the night.

I'm really proud of myself. I'm usually the type who doesn't go outside my comfort zone. I won't even go to Taco Tuesday to meet up with people by myself. So, I'm proud of my bravery. It taught me a good lesson. I can make cool new friends if I take a step outside of comfy.

Question of the Day

If you could only keep one channel on your cable, which would it be and why?

School Stress!!

It's that time of year again...

Time to have nightmares of being in front of a class of teenagers and realizing you are naked.

Time to wake up in cold sweats thinking that you overslept and your principal is calling to tell you that the kids are tearing up your classroom.

Time to make lesson plans, meet new students, schmooze parents, create bulletin boards.

Oh summer, where did you go?

Beautiful Day!

Today was my last day with my friends in town. We took my dog for a walk to get breakfast at this bagel shop in my neighborhood. A dad and his 3 cute sons came in for some bagels. The boys were very interested in Bella, my dog. They crowded around her, petting her. After the man and his boys left, another customer walked up to me and said, you know that was Trevor Hoffman, don't you? I said, no, I didn't realize. Trevor Hoffman is the closer for the Padres. He's a really good pitcher. Well, I guess my dog is celebrity bait! She's so cute!
We spent the rest of the day having a picnic in La Jolla. We couldn't have ordered a more beautiful day! The sun was shining and it was a perfect temperature for laying out and playing frisbee. We went to Trader Joes and loaded up the goods for a picnic and enjoyed ourselves on the grass. Check out this pic of Bella having fun!

Horse Racing at Del Mar

Today I took my friends from Alabama to Del Mar for the Horse Races. We bet on 3 races, but never won. It was really fun, and we learned something new. I recommend it!

In the picture here, you can barely see the horses leaving the gate. If you look between the guy in brown's head and the head of the guy in the hawaiian shirt, you can barely see the horses and jockeys leaving the gate. It was fun!!

Then, for dinner, I took them to a Mongolian Grill restaurant. They said it was a new cultural experience. I think they really liked the food! I love mongolian grill!! yummy!!

Sorry my photography is so lacking! I'm just having fun chronicling their trip for them because my friends don't have a digital camera. Can you imagine?

I did decide to move

An update for those of you who read my blog...
I did finally decide to move into the new house that is closer to downtown. Now I am having remorse. I think I will like it once I am there and settled. I will be a LOT closer to my new teaching job. I will also have 2 good friends in the neighborhood. That's always nice!! I'm excited!! Now, I just need to start thinking about packing! Yikes! This is my new house. It's nothing that exciting, but I'll make it home! (by the way, that's not my truck there in the driveway)

Wild Animal Park

Instead of going to the zoo, I convinced my friends to go to the wild animal park. When in San Diego, I strongly recommend it! The W.A.P. is the way zoos should be. All the animals are in huge habitats that really resemble the wild. You take a safari train ride around the park for an hour, looking at all the animals. It's very cool. We saw lions, deer, antelope, rhinos, zeebra, okapi (see picture to the left --it's a funny mix of everything, but it's closest relative is the giraffe), giraffes, apes, etc!

What do I do with my friends??

Hello everyone, I need your help!
I have a couple of friends (a married couple) coming in town today and staying a week. We are planning to do the zoo, the Padres, and a day trip to LA or Orange County beaches. Any other ideas? Any local San Diegans with recommendations on restaurants or things to do? They are on a tight budget, so I can't do anything too extravagant.

Things I want to do before I turn 30

Do you have one of those running mental lists in your head? I have one, and it's entitled, "Things I want to do before I turn 30." I was reminded of my list by Dating Dummy's latest post about a birthday card he got when he turned 30.

I remember being in my early 20's in college, thinking I had ages to accomplish everything I wanted in life. I actually cried on my 20th birthday because I realized that I was now in my 20's--the decade when a lot of people get their first real job, get married, and start having kids. That seemed very foreign and scary to me!

Awhile back I did a 5 year plan which included getting married, living in a real house, and getting a dog. I've somehow managed to accomplish those goals. I really thought I'd be the last of all my friends to get married. I was so independent, but somehow everything just fell into place when I met my husband.

So now, yes, you guessed it--I have one more thing left on the list for when I am 30. I always said I wouldn't want to have kids until I was 30 (like that was middle-aged or something.) So, now that 30 is just one year away, I guess it's time to think about that one a little more.

I've never been one of those girls who wanted to get married and pop out some kids right away. I don't fawn over every baby I see. (You can ask my friends about that one. They think I hate small children.) I've always been more comfortable around teenagers than little babies.

But, the nearer I get to 30, the more loudly the proverbial Biological Clock is chiming away! It's starting to seem like something I want to do. I feel like it's now or never, and I don't like the idea of never. I'm starting to see the charm in screaming babies. I am starting to think that Pottery Barn kids has some cute stuff. I'm starting to check out the patterns on baby strollers and crib bumpers, etc. I was never like this!!

So, as I turn 29 this year, who knows? This might be the year I experience morning sickness and other horrible maladies. I'll keep you posted.

(By the way, the picture above is of one of my friend's babies, who was a week old yesterday. I personally think she's the cutest baby I've ever seen. )